📄 Archived: 2025-08-17 21:19:23 UTC
🔗 Source: https://old.reddit.com/r/transvoice/comments/d3clhe/ls_voice_training_guide_level_1_for_mtf/

# L's Voice Training Guide (Level 1) for MTF transgender vocal feminization

r/transvoice • by u/Lsomethingsomething • 6184 points

L's Voice Training Guide (Level 1) for MTF transgender vocal feminization

L's Voice Training Guide

Level 1 - Foundations
1. Inspiration *
2. Vocal Tract Length ***
3. Pitch **

Level 2 - Intermediate
4. Resonance ***
5. Open Quotient *
6. Intonation **

Level 3 - Advanced
7. Articulation **
8. Vocal Twang *
9. Throat Closure ***

Level 4 - Mastery
10. Exploration *
11. Polishing **
12. Performance ***

*easy **medium ***hard

# Introduction

Hey, friend. Want to change your voice? Well... you can - that's an option.

Your voice is much more malleable than you may realize. There are at least a dozen different dimensions that you can learn to control independently to change the sound of your voice. The way you talk right now is not your one "true" voice, it is a habit. A habit that can be changed, if you so choose.

I like to come at this challenge from two angles. One is to break down all the muscle movements involved and learn to manipulate them individually, through simple drills. The other is to listen to carefully selected example voices and learn to imitate them, intuitively. You will get results much faster by using both, as you do in this guide.

My approach to voice training is not a process of feminization. It is a journey in flexibility, to full fluency over the entire possibility space of your voice. This guide is aimed at those of you who are already comfortable in the masculine end of the spectrum. With the exercises I've gathered here, you will familiarize yourself with the feminine end - and everything in between.

Once you have gained complete freedom across your vocal range, you can choose exactly where you'd like to live - whether that is within one voice, or two. Or three. Masculine, feminine, or androgynous, young or old, human or cartoon. Any or all. It's up to you.

So now, listen to this clip to hear me demonstrate the eight most important elements for vocal feminization, gradually transforming a masculine voice into a feminine one. Then, listen to this clip to hear how they sound one at a time, in isolation. With practice, you can learn to do this too!

Most of the material in this guide can be traced back to the pioneering work of Zheanna Erose of TransVoiceLessons, as well as the excellent free tutorial videos at New York Vocal Coaching. Many thanks, also, to the Scinguistics community, and of course, all of you lovely people here on r/transvoice!

I've organized this guide into four levels, from Foundations to Mastery, each split into three subsections. You could easily spend a month on each level - a week or two per subsection. But you don't have to master each subsection before moving on to the next. Just give yourself enough time to digest the material and get a feel for it, and then start the next subsection as soon as you no longer feel overwhelmed.

Ready? Let's begin.

~L

# Level 1 - Foundations

## 1. Inspiration

Start by watching this video for a really quick overview of the voice feminization process (and optionally, this video to learn more about the acoustic theory involved). Then watch this video for a breakdown of the vocal anatomy involved.

Your homework is to find a recording of a female speaking voice that you'd like to be able to imitate, that can serve as an inspiration and a point of reference. It doesn't have to be the one perfect, ultimate voice - just find one or two examples that seem pleasant and relatable. Think of female actresses or characters with nice voices, or YouTubers or podcast hosts you enjoy (search for "female youtubers" or "female podcast hosts" if you need some ideas). Mine is this podcast interview with Keon Saghari. Go ahead and use that if you can't decide on one right now!

Then start listening to it, at least a little bit every day. This will help you internalize the sounds and speech patterns of the voice that you like. And be on the lookout for new voices - if you find one you like better, start listening to that one instead!

## 2. Vocal Tract Length

Next you want to start strengthening and learning to control the muscles that raise your larynx (or voice box). This is how you shorten the length of your vocal tract, from your larynx to your lips, to match the proportions of a typical female vocal tract. Building these muscles will take a while, so we'll start with this first.

Do not do the swallow-and-hold exercise from this video, as the hold can cause unnecessary strain, but do try swallowing a few times. You want to touch your larynx (Adam's apple) lightly with your finger, and then yawn and feel it move down, and then swallow and feel it move up.

Once you have felt this a few times, watch this video and try the "big dog, small dog" exercise. If you're having trouble with the small dog, it can help to start yawning, to bring the larynx down, and then start to swallow to bring the larynx up, and then stick your tongue out like a dog panting and say "ahh" in a whisper to make sure you're not closing off your throat. Then watch this video and try the whisper siren exercise. You want to smoothly slide from a big dog "uhh" to a small dog "ehh" as your larynx slides upward. Again, place a finger or two lightly on your throat to feel your larynx move up and down.

Your homework is to practice the whisper siren for few minutes whenever you remember, throughout the day - say, whenever you go to the bathroom. It's almost silent, so you can do it anywhere and practice holding your muscles in place at the top (the high end of the siren, or the small dog) to build strength. Eventually, you want to learn to lift your larynx easily, without straining the muscles in your jaw and neck. As you get more comfortable with it, try to relax your neck a little bit more each time, until you can do it without tension.

## 3. Pitch

Keep doing the previous exercises every day, but when you're ready for something more, you can start working on your pitch, or how high or low your voice is. Pitch is just one of many elements, and not even the most important, but it's probably the most well-known difference between the average male and female voice.

In addition to pitch, there are several registers that your voice will lock into at different points along your range, each with a different sound quality. Watch this video to hear the differences between a chest voice and a falsetto (and a mix voice, which is technically the same register as your chest voice, your modal register). Follow along with the warmups in this video, and then try switching between the registers a few times, both singing and speaking.

Then download the Android app Vocal Pitch Monitor (or Vocal Pitch Monitor on iOS) and in the settings, change the Scale to D Major and check the box to Display frequency in Hz. With the app running, talk in your starting voice and see where your pitch falls, naturally. A typical male speaking voice will stay between D2 and D3 (which are marked by horizontal lines, since we set the Scale to D Major). Now try talking higher and higher in pitch, until your voice is in the female range, around D3 (150 Hz) and above. Don't go higher than D4 (300 Hz), though, or you'll sound like a cartoon character!

You might find that you start in your modal register when you're in the male range, but flip over into falsetto at some point in order to get into the female range. Or you might find that you have to strain and shout to get that high. If that happens, just go back down to the pitch where you can still speak comfortably in your modal register and don't worry about going higher for now.

Your homework is to set aside some time every day (say, half an hour) to warm up with the video above and then practice speaking in the female range (between D3 and D4, or 150-300 Hz) or as close as you can get without straining or going into a falsetto. You can just say random things that pop into your head, recite lines from memory, or read a book or reddit comments out loud, while keeping an eye on your pitch in Vocal Pitch Monitor.

It might sound terrible, but that's okay - the important thing is to get used to speaking in that range. Drink water throughout and take a break if you feel your voice getting strained or hoarse.

(continue to Level 2 - Intermediate ...)

## Comments

u/akaisuiseinosha • 228 points

Something you might add, perhaps as an appendix, is what an example practice session might look like at each level. I can't speak for others, but I have issues constructing my own study plans, so having even an example of what a day at each level looks like would be super helpful.

Btw, your guide is fantastic and even without a steady study plan I've made great progress with it. Thank you for putting this guide together!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 119 points

That's a great idea, thank you, and I am planning to add that soon as part of a little overview for each level! :)

And you're welcome! :D

u/[deleted] • 15 points

I’m currently 14 and I have a really small Adam’s apple coming, will it be easier to make my voice more feminine; and can this slow or stop my Adam’s apple from going further?

u/solightIfellin2space • 35 points

if i may answer - i am a singer and a musician so i know a bit about this stuff too. practising won't make your Adam's apple stop growing - that's up to hormones - but practising and singing will help you control your voice better and it will make learning all this stuff easier

u/[deleted] • 6 points

to increase your range and stuff like that with vocal training. you need a good routine because it'll take longer without one

u/MinutesTilMidnight • 78 points

Hi, i am cis, but this subreddit was recommended to me for whatever reason, and I’m interested. I’m AFAB but my voice is deeper than I’d like it to be. Is it possible to use this guide to change that? Also, would it be disrespectful to the trans people here that use it? Because I don’t wanna do it if it’s disrespectful.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 67 points

Hi there, you are more than welcome to use this guide to learn to make your voice more feminine, regardless of gender identity! :) You've come to the right place, welcome! ;)

u/MinutesTilMidnight • 39 points

Ahhh!! Thank you very much!!! I’m really excited! :D

u/Lsomethingsomething • 30 points

Yay! XD

u/AdPuzzleheaded3263 • 35 points

"yeah I'm trans. Female to alpha female" Insert gigastacy

u/Neon_Ani • 7 points

afab stands for "alpha females are badass"

u/MothwingIsATreasure • 6 points

I'm terrified

u/Bird_in_a_hoodie • 3 points

Lmao

u/Akiryx • 2 points

That's what's awesome about the trans "agenda", gender confirming care is for ALL!

u/kori228 • 69 points

oh hey a post version of your guide, nice!

u/inconceivium • 31 points

This is incredible! Thanks so much for putting in all of this work. That clip of you adding in the elements one by one is so impressive and amazingly useful!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 16 points

Awesome, so glad you found it helpful, thank you! :D

u/obscurepink • 32 points

Just listened to the first clip and I am totally amazed 😄 Such a lovely feminine voice! 😄

u/Lsomethingsomething • 22 points

Aww, thank you! :3

u/ann16538 • 20 points

Thanks so much for this guide! I have a few questions.

1. Should I listen to someone talking? Could I get the same results by listening to someone sing?

2. How long should I spend on each part before moving on to the next?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 21 points

You're welcome! :D

If you want to learn to feminize your talking, listen to someone talking. If you want to learn to feminize your singing, listen to someone singing. Or both. ;)

As far as how long to spend on each part...

> I've organized this guide into four levels, from Foundations to Mastery, each split into three subsections. You could easily spend a month on each level - a week or two per subsection. But you don't have to master each subsection before moving on to the next. Just give yourself enough time to digest the material and get a feel for it, and then start the next subsection as soon as you no longer feel overwhelmed.

u/Caityface91 • 14 points

This is a wonderful resource, thanks for posting.

Fortunately for me, my voice never fully dropped as a teenager and talking to people face to face I've had no issue passing for years now.

Unfortunately though, thanks to a combination of autistic traits and being very quiet when young I tend to speak very monotone and have virtually no range. This means I get called sir on the phone about 50% of the time, and if I try to raise the pitch my voice just cuts out and there's nothing there. Even the slightest raise in pitch makes my voice a bit croaky and I sound like i have emphysema.. which isn't great for a 28 year old who's never smoked.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 11 points

You're welcome, thanks! :D

Are you looking for some guidance on how to gain more fluency with your voice and pitch? I would say that singing exercises in general are going to be the most helpful, though you'll need to do really simple, easy stuff to start with. There's a wealth of free singing tutorials, from beginner to advanced, at New York Vocal Coaching on YouTube - definitely check that out.

As far as learning to change your pitch without getting croaky, it sounds like you may need to start really simple and practice what are known as "semi-occluded vocal tract exercises" (SOVTE). They are a little boring, but they may be a necessary first step (they're good for anyone to practice, honestly). You can search for examples on YouTube, but here is an introduction and some example exercises from u/demivierge.

Also, are you able to do a relaxed sigh or yawn with your voice, where you slide down in pitch as you go, without sounding croaky? :o

Let me know if that helps! :)

u/uniQChick • 14 points

Doing voice warm-ups with Justin Stoney is amazing. This man can stimulate, encourage and inspire in the process.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

Yay, I'm glad you liked it too! :D

u/boutliketwentyfeet • 10 points

This guide seems really comprehensive, thanks for this!

I just have one question. I'm currently on pitch and whenever I begin speaking, my voice starts at around F3 but quickly drops to around B2. Is consistency something that will just come with practice, or do I need to specifically try to keep my voice steady?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 7 points

Thanks! :) That's a really common problem - the same thing used to happen to me all the time. Just practice keeping your voice steady without dropping below a certain line (and eventually get that line higher until it's around F3) and your consistency will improve. ;)

u/boutliketwentyfeet • 4 points

Thanks for the reply! I'll be sure to give that a shot.

u/codenamenatalie • 22 points

committed save on all 4 posts uwu

u/MindlessHorror • 9 points

> In addition to pitch, there are several registers that your voice will lock into at different points along your range, each with a different sound quality. Watch this video to hear the differences between a chest voice and a falsetto (and a mix voice, which is technically the same register as your chest voice, your modal register). Follow along with the warmups in this video, and then try switching between the registers a few times, both singing and speaking.

> Then download the Android app Vocal Pitch Monitor (or Vocal Pitch Monitor on iOS) and in the settings, change the Scale to F Major and check the box to Display frequency in Hz. With the app running, talk in your starting voice and see where your pitch falls, naturally. A typical male speaking voice will stay between F2 and F3 (which are marked by horizontal lines, since we set the Scale to F Major). Now try talking higher and higher in pitch, until your voice is in the female range, around F3 and above. Don't go higher than F4, though, or you'll sound like a cartoon character!

I don't really get this. How do I change register? Do the piano notes matter? How do I try talking higher and higher in pitch?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 8 points

Have you had any luck following along with the exercises in the videos? These are things that you can study through those and other singing tutorials on YouTube. :)

u/MindlessHorror • 8 points

No. I can hear that he's doing a thing, but I have no idea how to follow along.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 8 points

Hmm. Do you ever listen to music and sing along?

If not, you might want to just skip this pitch section for now, and focus on other aspects of the voice. Or, get some real-time help from people in some of the trans voice communities on Discord. Are you on Discord already? :)

u/MindlessHorror • 9 points

Yeah, I've been on TransVoice for like 8 months and Scinguistics for 2 or 3. It seems like people either think I'm trolling or don't know how to help because "everyone knows this" and "it's not that hard to learn"

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

Hmm. Ping me on Discord and maybe we can find some time to work on this in a voice call.

u/MindlessHorror • 4 points

Can do. I've got to get dinner around, so it might not be tonight.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 4 points

Of course! Take your time. ;)

u/MindlessHorror • 8 points

Hey, I caught Charles in voice chat on Scinguistics, and I think I have something to work with now.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

Awesome! :D Feel free to reach out, still, when you feel like it. :)

u/ChainsawChick • 2 points

Did you get any advice for this? I've been in the same boat for literal years now and all anyone ever does is parrot the same stuff. I know I'm four years late but still.

u/MindlessHorror • 2 points

Sort of not really, but sort of?

Lots of hanging out in voice chats with people who can identify what they're hearing and open lessons and whatever, using a real-time spectrograph so I can see what I might not hear (especially while focused on making sounds, or dissociating because I'm overwhelmed), and just playing around with sounds a ton have helped.

like, I'll just start talking and try to slowly change something about my vocal posture to an extreme without an intentional sound to see what happens and how far I can go. the result is usually something super cartoonish, but that's fine; it's just building a sense of what happens how that piece effects my voice. It doesn't even need to be words, sometimes I'll just hold a vowel and move my mouth/throat around while listening and watching. For a while, my party trick was to make didgeridoo noises, or to talk like a rejected Rugrats character.

I'm still not where I wanted to be, but I've gotten to a more or less comfortable place. I'm not spending whole days on it anymore, and it's been a while since I've done intentional voice training... so I guess part of my progress has been in learning to love where I've gotten even it it wasn't where I meant to go.

u/ChainsawChick • 2 points

Well, that's good to hear at least, and I am happy for you. I know exactly what you mean by the disassoicating thing lol, that happens whenever I even attempt any of these stupid exercises.

Anyway, thanks. Still feels like nothing can be done for me, so oh well.

u/WillAskSomeQuestions • 9 points

Quick question, for the whisper siren should I hold the "ahh" at its highest point to build strength or should I speak with it or what? Also thank you for making these guides as they're both incredibly informative and useful.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 7 points

For now, just hold it at its highest point (as well as practicing moving your larynx smoothly up and down). In section 4, you'll start trying to speak with it. ;)

And you're welcome, yay! :D

u/WillAskSomeQuestions • 5 points

Oh okay I get it, so for now just focus on getting some strength to move it by itself and worry about talking later. Also hate to ask again but I've also tried lowering my larynx after it reaches its peak but I'm having a lot of difficulty with it, any advice on this? Also thank you for helping me with my previous question. Edit: Or should I only start practicing to lower and raise it once I've got enough strength to keep it up myself? Edit 2: Nevermind, figured it out

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

You can try relaxing the muscles that brought your larynx up to lower it again. Just keep playing with it! :)

u/WillAskSomeQuestions • 6 points

Gotcha, thanks again.

u/anotherpositron • 13 points

Thanks for doing this uwu

u/SPARTAN-141 • 6 points

Hey, firstly, thanks for this awesome guide, you're actually helping a lot of people !

I have a question though, as a natural progression of BDSD shouldn't you train with vowels with high larynx like in the video and Dakota's doc before moving on ? Or is it actually not necessary ?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

Thanks, glad to help! X)

Training different vowels with the "big dog, small dog" exercise is a good way to start learning to hold the high larynx posture while speaking, but it's not something that is relevant until section 4, on Resonance. For section 2, the idea is just to start getting used to moving the larynx at all, and building up the coordination and strength to move it smoothly and easily, without tension. But feel free to play with vowels and speech if you feel inspired to do a little extra credit! ;D

u/SPARTAN-141 • 7 points

Thanks for the response, I actually just checked the section 4 right before reading your response hehe, sorry for the dumb question...

I do have another (hopefully relevant) question though, in section 3 when lifting the pitch, is it important to keep the larynx at baseline height, because I find myself slightly lifting it as well as my pitch, which is part of section 4 I understand, is this gonna mess up the whole thing, should I really try and keep my larynx 'neutral' while doing this exercise ?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 7 points

Good question! :) Honestly, it's not a big deal if your larynx raises a bit when you raise your pitch - that's a natural reflex, and it takes a lot of work to learn to isolate the two completely, which isn't even that important for voice feminization. I wouldn't worry about that part. ;)

The main thing to watch out for is your pitch jumping too high when you raise your larynx super high, not the other way around. If you can learn to keep your pitch constant as your larynx raises, that's great, and it's honestly a pretty advanced thing to practice. :)

u/SPARTAN-141 • 4 points

Great, I actually manage to talk with high larynx and a A3-C4 pitch with a relatively soft voice, but it barely sounds androgynous, is this because I'm doing something wrong or my throat just ...isn't used to it? (started 'bout a week ago) or is it just my anatomy (I have a goiter and lost 3 molars+no 3rd molars) and larynx+pitch+OQ just isn't enough ?

Again, thanks for your response as well as this guide, right now it feels like fem voice just isn't going to happen, but thanks to you and the 'community' I know it's definitely possible.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 7 points

That's a great start! :) Raising your larynx and pitch and using more open quotient will get you to an androgynous place, but not a fully feminine one - as you can hear in my demo clip. Getting that to a more unambiguously feminine sound is where the oral resonance and articulation start to really make a difference.

Aww, you can do it! <3

u/SPARTAN-141 • 5 points

So my raised larynx+pitch+OQ won't get better overtime ? In your clyp you sound fem with just larynx+pitch to me. Anyways thank you for the encouragement, I'll do my best !

u/Lsomethingsomething • 5 points

Oh, it might get better over time, but by the time you do, you won't think it sounds feminine anymore, haha! ;p

u/griff073 • 7 points

I found it amazing when i clicked on this and saw "6 people here" like even after years you are still helping many people. Thank you

u/WuzzulWurb • 8 points

god ive been doing this thing for so long and i still feel like im on level 1 and 2 T-T

u/MilesAlchei • 5 points

Thank you for this, it's definitely helping, but slowly, post nasal drip is a bitch.

u/[deleted] • 5 points

Hey L can you tell me if that’s okay sometimes my pitch when I talk words can make notes go down to D#3 but I’m keeping between F#3~A3

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

Yes, that's totally fine! :) Not only because everything you do with your voice is neither good nor bad, but many cis women dip down into that range when they talk, too. ;)

u/BladeofOblivion • 5 points

Just adding my voice to the chorus, I started last night on trying the vocal tract length stuff and having done some stretching of the muscle since then (and trying to sing along with the radio on my way home, once I figured out how to raise it a little and still breathe), I'm already noticing some improvement compared to the recording from last night. Mild, but it's a start!

u/OverexposedPotato • 5 points

Thank you so much for this, I'm literally freaking out on my first training day!
I had some experience doing voices to play board games, but I didn't know about the voice mix thing. It really helps you out once you know your lowest (chest voice) pitch and your highest (falsetto) pitch, then I tried to find a spot in between where I was comfortable talking. Out of nowhere I found a mix perfectly in the female voice range and I've talking to myself for the last 2h. I can't believe I was actually able to do it that quick! Now I'm gonna work on the next steps. Thank yoooou <3

u/[deleted] • 1 points

Thank you SO MUCH for posting this very thorough guide L.

What an amazing resource!

u/HomemadeDixenCider • 5 points

I'm crying in a good way thank you so, so much.... I have so much love for you and all that you've done for everyone that needs this info laid out

u/dNihil • 4 points

Thank you so so much for making this guide! I blasted through it over the past 10 days because I never felt overwhelmed at any point.

I actually got a good grasp of everything except pitch. Pitch is the only part that I can't train immediately because I think I need to actually exercise the muscle... I can't get any higher than F3 without straining and holding it there is also a big challenge. I guess that's something that just comes with time and practice.

Besides all that I hope you're having a wonderful day, and know that by compiling this guide and sharing it you've absolutely made a world of difference for many people! <3

u/TranscendentalViolet • 3 points

Commenting so it’s easy to find when I’m not so tired, thanks for the links :)

u/SamOShanter • 3 points

I'm gonna leave this here for ease of access.

u/ksimbobbery • 3 points

I’m having a lot of trouble and it’s making me want to cry

u/Lsomethingsomething • 4 points

Oh no! :( What are you having trouble with?

Believe it or not I still feel like that sometimes. <3

u/ksimbobbery • 3 points

I literally can not get the “swallow and hold” thing without sounding like I’m trying to emulate a cartoon alien guy

u/Lsomethingsomething • 5 points

Oh, that's normal! :o Now that you've tried it, just move on to trying "big dog, small dog" and the "whisper siren" exercises. Don't even worry about trying to speak through them yet, just focus on moving the larynx.

u/ksimbobbery • 4 points

Ok thanks for the reassurance. I think I’m getting too caught up in how I still sound when I need more practice with the basics. Thank you again

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

You're welcome. :) Be patient with yourself. <3

u/Sophia-Eldritch • 3 points

Couple Questions, what if im completely tone def? How would that affect practice?

Does the female voice im trying to imitate have to be in English or an I just practicing the tone? There's a Japanese voice actress I really like the sound of

If you were to give an estimate, how long do you think it'd take with daily practice to pass vocally?

Thank you in advance!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

If you're tone-deaf, you may rely more heavily on pitch apps (Vocal Pitch Monitor) for your pitch practice and it may take longer to develop the habit of staying within your desired pitch range. It's possible that getting a feel for intonation patterns may be more challenging as well, but not necessarily.

You should have at least one female voice reference in the language you speak (English, I assume) but you can also have one in Japanese in addition. Just make sure you listen to both.

If you're practicing daily, you may find that you can sporadically hit a passing voice in a few months but not fully have consistent access to it until you have a few more months of training, including in social situations. I'd say at least six months to a year to become really solid and consistent in your voice. Based on my experience so far - it's hard! :d

u/Sophia-Eldritch • 3 points

If im gonna do something, I'm gonna do it the whole way, I'm planning on recording YouTube stuff, and if I'm editing and hearing a different voice than what I want I'll be unhappy, but if I'm recording daily and listening to what I sound like and hear a difference after a couple months I'll be the happiest

If all goes as planned I basically want to make the voice my voice, I basically want a one way change

I really appreciate the reply by the way, thank you so much!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

That sounds like a great plan, best of luck! <3

u/LuluAzhal • 3 points

After messing around with the app, I found my voice is just naturally kind of high pitched, since it's telling me I'm already above F3 most of the time. I still don't pass, but it's good to know I don't need to worry about one part of it

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

Nice! :)

u/allyourloves • 3 points

very stupid question but if a trans man and a trans girl decided to surgically trade voice boxes could they do that

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

I don't think it would be feasible, but even if it were, it wouldn't do much except to exchange their baseline pitch with each other. The most important feature for the perception of gender is the size and shape of the mouth and throat, which would not be swapped in that example. :p

u/[deleted] • 3 points

This is great! I socially transitioned 6 months ago and have been voice training for a long time. My main issue is consistency. On the phone I always get gendered correctly when speaking to strangers but my main issues are psychological. When speaking to someone I know, or speaking to people face to face, I often automatically masculinize my voice and find tit very hard not to. I've been told it's a common issue due to multi-tasking but I think it's a self-consciousness thing. Also, at work we have to wear earplugs and I find that trying to talk loud enough for people to hear me plus the changed sound the earplugs make cause me to drop into male voice often if only to be heard for safety reasons (lots of machinery). Any tips on either of these issues would be absolutely amazing, in the mean time I will start to go through this guide as time permits! Thank you again x

u/GracieHexGirl • 3 points

Thank you for this but for how often am I supposed to do the whisper siren each day? How many times each day maybe? Idk

u/Lsomethingsomething • 6 points

You want to practice the whisper siren more times than you can count each day - the more the better. :) Don't stress about not doing it enough, just do it as often as you comfortably can. Frequency is more important than quantity.

u/GracieHexGirl • 3 points

Does the same go for swallow and hold and big dog small dog?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

As soon as you're able to do the whisper siren and big dog small dog, I would stop doing swallow and hold. But you can do big dog small dog interchangeably with the whisper siren. Pick your favorite, or switch between them.

u/GracieHexGirl • 2 points

I will probably mostly do the whisper siren since big dog small dog makes me feel... Weird and crazy, gives me anxiety lol only thing is that in like 20-25 minutes I managed to hurt my throat today day 1 of the practice lol should give breaks unfortunately.

Tysm for answering though! I did not expect it so soon. Love my sisters.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

Yeah, it's definitely better to do it briefly more times throughout the day than to do it all at once! Whisper siren is my favorite too. :)

You're welcome! :3

u/TheGamingBlob69 • 3 points

Already sort of being a voice actor makes trying to nail voice feminization interesting. I have a decent amount of control over my voice, to a point that I have confused people by saying stuff in other people's voices in group conversations, but it's so hard to adapt my voice into another one that I will probably permanently speak in one day. I appreciate this guide though :) I plan to use it.

u/[deleted] • 2 points

mimicking your friends voices is evil 😭.

u/AnnePaes152 • 3 points

L? more like W

u/CeltrikYT • 3 points

Hey L! So, I've been going at this hard for like a day or two, but I have some questions:

I'm currently doing vocal tract length, haven't started on pitch, but:

When I stop exhaling (do I have to stop exhaling?) on the whispering siren, my Larynx (I'm not deep into puberty, so not sure if it's a really small adam's apple or just a non grown one) goes down slowly, like it drifts down) and I dont like that, at all, but I'm not sure why it hat happens.

So a possible fix I guessed would be to hold it like with swallow and hold, but that only comes with more questions, because:Swallow and hold requires a specific vocal and tongue position, not just tension, so if I use that, I'm faraid i won't be able to progress further, since in that vocal position I canpt reathe nor talk.

I probably missed a couple of things here. If I remember, I'll edit this. Thank you!!

u/Demilightning • 3 points

Hey, it seems the whisper siren exercise has been removed from Vocal Tract Length. Assumedly I can just look it up but just thought I'd let you know.

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

Oh no, it seems like Zoey Alexandria has removed all her videos. :/ I'm not sure if anyone else has made a video about the whisper siren - if you find one, please let me know!

u/nyham • 3 points

This comment will be lost at sea but i need to say it, i have tried to find help for voice training and what they never dirretly tell me is HOMEWORK to do after i understand a principle and this 5yo post does and for that i thank you L
<3

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

You're welcome. :3

u/nyham • 3 points

sending u much love because this was a very rare moment in my life that's someone randomly give what i need ily so fucking much

u/Aromatic_Ad_7002 • 3 points

what the fuck? this is insane, this is literal witchcraft in the best way possible, i should learn this shit asap.

u/DoughnutUk • 3 points

Is this still relevant or are there new resources now? I found out that the swalow and hold technique can cause harm, so is out of date. How do I know what is and is not safe? Im completely new to all of this.

u/jead94 • 2 points

thank you so much for this!!!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

You're welcome! :D

u/notthrowingaway777 • 2 points

Lily pichu exposed D:

u/thereisnonothing • 2 points

Thank you very much. I'm gonna update when i achieve my goal (today is 20/2/2020).

u/Nymcus • 2 points

I’m a bit late since this was posted, but do you know if any of the stages in the guide will require different methods for languages other than English.

u/TheMiningD • 2 points

I never save posts but damn thanks so much I am so happy right now

u/asge1868 • 2 points

What in the shit? This is the most fucking amazing voice I've ever fucking heard in my life!!

u/GIASFELFEBREHBER • 2 points

any alternatives for vocal pitch monitor? i dont wanna pay for ittttttt

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

Yes, you can use the free app Voice Tools, just don't get too caught up in the default "Male" and "Female" pitch ranges. :)

u/[deleted] • 2 points

what is the big dog small dog? I watched that video and it was never mentioned

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

It's the exercise where you stick your tongue out and pant like a dog, and start with a deep sound and switch to a little, shallow sound by raising your larynx.

u/Local-Chart • 2 points

Would anyone have any tips for People with paralyzed vocal chords? Got one side that doesn't work due to tubes and stuff down my throat (oxygen tubes and food tubes from birth to age 3) - born at 25 weeks gestation in the second trimester..., Had a soft voice most of my life although it's a mid range register and sounds like I smoked a pack a day for my whole life while singing in a jazz bar (I like jazz and did smoke tobacco for the past 20 years despite my stuffed lungs),

many thanks,

kiera

u/callmekate770 • 2 points

Hi, sorry if this has already been done, but do you have a pdf or similar version of this? I would really like to print this and take notes. If not, no worries.

u/Octoire • 2 points

Omg I’m amazed. I’m a cis woman and just looking up feminization because I’ve heard it’s super hard. Came across this and mind is blown!! Incredible👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

u/FryCakes • 2 points

My current issue is that I feel way too scared to practice on my own at home, even when alone. And I get discouraged because I’m like “what if I’m doing something wrong, and it doesn’t work?”

u/GiacomInox • 2 points

Thank you for this guide. Unfortunately, the app you recommended isn't compatible with newer android versions. Which one would you recommend now?

u/Dogogobrrr • 2 points

FOR ANYONE ACTUALLY TRYING TO FEMINIZE YOUR VOICE! DO NOT WATCH TRANSVOICELESSONS!! She contradicts her self half the time and give’s unhelpful advice, ive gotten MUCH FURTHER in my voice feminization by ignoring her video’s entirely and just following others advice, this guide may be based on her videos but it often corrects her contradictions with the use of other videos and references! DO NOT LISTEN TO TRANSVOICELESSONS!

u/[deleted] • 2 points

The newer TransVoiceLessons videos are the ones with more up-to-date methodology. Her older videos should indeed be taken with a grain of salt, though.

u/hEatr3d • 2 points

For some reason, I think I got it down, when talking alone in my room (on take 3 or around that), but whenever I have a real time listener, my voice starts shaking and I get something of grandma tones. Will it always be like this?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

We all go through that phase. It gets better. <3

u/jewel_the_beetle • 2 points

Thanks for all this! Trying this soon, I have a super deep voice but...like you said it's not just pitch

u/[deleted] • 2 points

Thank you so much for creating resources like this!!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

You're welcome! :3

u/Dr_agentReal • 2 points

okay ik its a bit late but what about privacy cuz im like awkward around others in my household

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

There are covert voice exercises you can do that are very quiet (like whispering) or not obvious (like humming) that can be really helpful.

Some people also like practicing inside a parked car or while walking around where there aren't a lot of people. Do you think either of those would work for you? :)

u/Dr_agentReal • 2 points

yeah thanks :3

u/PossibleAd3637 • 2 points

you literal lifesaver

u/Few_Championship6455 • 2 points

i dont think many people can get there right away tho - not everyones voice is equally deep. mine for example is very soft on its own by default for some reason (seems to get a bit deeper over the years but nothing too crazy) and a bit androgynous in my opinion so the steps to go there might be different from one person to another - i also have reasons to belive that being on HRT for a long enough will also contribute in the development of the required vocal tones to achieve this (feel free to correct me in case im wrong) but yeah you just have to experiment a big and "customize" the guide to fit you for maximum results ^-^ (thank me later folks! :3)

u/[deleted] • 2 points

Is it a good idea to start voice training before HRT?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

Yes, it wouldn't hurt to start as soon as you're ready! :)

u/Julie_OwO • 2 points

Just came across this 5 year old guide and just skimming through it, it looks fantastic. Just wondering, do all of the links still work this much later, or is there an updated/new guide I should look at instead?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

Thanks! :) There are some videos that have been taken down where I haven't found a replacement, but most are still up. I've been meaning to write a new, updated guide for the last four years but haven't yet. :d

u/horsyuwu • 2 points

question, i might be stupid but isnt raising your larynx the way to increase your voice's pitch? or am i subconciously doing both at the same time when im trying to talk high pitched?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

So, raising the larynx will often raise both pitch and resonance simultaneously as a side effect, but the resonance is the important part in this case. There are also other ways to raise pitch - the larynx height is only one piece of the puzzle.

u/No-Information-8394 • 2 points

Should I still work on my pitch? my voice pitch is already naturally in female range. Like right above maximum male range pitch and just entering female pitch. I can stay in female range easily, so should I still practice it?

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

It's still helpful to work on pitch for other benefits, like making it easier to increase your open quotient later. And having a bit more pitch range will be helpful even if you're already easily in the female range.

But if you want to spend less time on pitch and more time on things like resonance right now, that would also make sense! :)

u/percyplaysthegames • 2 points

Hi! This seems like a really well put together guide and im so excited to work my way through it. I do have a question though; how do I know if the larynx exercises are working/having an affect? Like swallow/hold I can feel my larynx move, but I can't say the same for big dog/small dog or whisper siren, and I'm afraid I'm doing something wrong. Thank you!

Edited to say that I can somewhat get whisper siren to work (like with my finger feel the larynx slide up) but I can't make any actual sound come out

u/Lsomethingsomething • 1 points

It may take a lot of practice and experimentation to get to the point where you can use the whisper siren or big dog small dog to move your larynx, but moving it is the goal and metric for success at this stage!

Don't worry about making a sound just yet - that can come later. Work on controlling the movement and using as little effort and tension as possible. Relaxed movement is the goal. :)

u/Enphoso • 2 points

Hey!! I have some questions:
What do i do if i get out of breath? I don't know if I'm trying too hard or anything, but i quickly get out of breath and have to stop doing the exercises quickly because of it, and i also don't know if im doing the exercises correctly because the videos were kind of vague, could you explain it to me? Thanks !!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

Hey, if you're running out of breath, you could try using less air during the exercises.

It can be hard to explain over text - which videos were you finding vague?

u/Enphoso • 2 points

I haven't went into the pitch section yet, but as of now im mainly confused on the whisper siren excercise

u/one_time_i_dreampt • 2 points

Approx how long do you think the larynx training takes. I plan to do the pitch and larynx training every day, 10 mind big dog, small dog, then 10 mind whisper siren, then 10 mins pitch. I'm unsure how this is as a session plan but I'm hoping it'll let me progress at a decent pace, safely

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

It's hard to predict how long it will take to develop a skill. But practicing it more frequently throughout the day is more important than practicing it longer per session. So if you break that 10 minutes up into 2-minute sessions throughout the day, that will be more effective than a single 10-minute session.

I would expect to spend a week or two getting familiar with that skill before layering on the next section's skill. Keep practicing it even after you've started working on new skills though! :)

u/one_time_i_dreampt • 2 points

Of course thank you so much, I'll take that and just do a few minutes every like two hours. Appreciate it

u/NiVONAcolon3 • 2 points

hello!!! don't know if you'll respond to this but which exact warm ups are you meant to follow in the video linked in the pitch section (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-1Padxsmio&t=281s). There are several warm ups in the vid, are we only meant to do the nasal resonator warm up? it would be useful if you could specify the exact time marks from where to start and where to end that would be super helpful !! thank u for this guide :33

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

For extra credit do all of them! :) At least do the ones from the timestamp onward, about the different registers. Hope that helps! c:

u/Quiet-Possession64 • 2 points

This is amazing! Tyvm _^

u/fashsmasher69 • 2 points

I find it hard to speak even in my "natural" voice, being autistic makes it hard to space out my words and not speed up and slow down suddenly. I have a feeling this is gonna be really hard for me, but thanks for the guide. I'm going to attempt to follow it, and begrudgingly listen to my own voice...

I was also locked away in my room for my teenage years and was practically mute, so speaking isn't a strong suit for me..

u/tweadler • 2 points

Hi, maybe a stupid question, but does the voice/voices you pick for “Inspiration” matter if they are in the same language as you? Also does singing versus talking audio matter? I have two characters’ voices that I really enjoy and would like to use, but they don’t speak much for English, so I’m wondering if me not being fluent in their native language would cause an issue. Also 5 years later, I hope this is still active ;-;

u/Lsomethingsomething • 2 points

You can have inspiration voices that are in a different language or singing instead of speaking, but you should also have at least one inspiration voice that is speaking in the same language that you want to speak in. :)

u/-MilkO_O- • 2 points

Hearing you switch from a masculine to a feminine voice step by step was mind-blowing.

u/YamiYuseiSpl • 2 points

As someone who does crossdressing for cosplay and loves the idea of getting just that extra feminine edge or to make my voice more gentle in general, I'm actually considering to look into this. c: Thanks for the post.

u/Altruistic_Pin_980 • 2 points

Saving this for later

u/Commercial-Network34 • 2 points

I have been wanting to do voice training for years but I have been very intimidated by the complexity of it all and I have been afraid to start. I just found this post and it is so clearly laid out and explained that I am inspired to finally begin my voice journey.

I want to thank you for the work you put in to help my community find comfort within themselves and become the people they feel they are meant to be. It is this type of generosity and support within my community that gives me pride and optimism for who I am and who I want to be.

To anyone who offers their support to the LGBT community, thank you for descending from heaven to help us, you make all the difference!

u/Lsomethingsomething • 3 points

Aww, thank you so much for writing, that is exactly why I wanted to put this guide together! :3

Definitely not descending from heaven though, I'm just another comrade in the trans girl trenches, trying to lend a muddied hand! <3

u/leaflowers03 • 2 points

Thx! 😊

u/Green-Razzmatazz9175 • 2 points

For subsection 2, How long am i expected to hold the larynx up? i can't seem to keep it up higher than ~1cm or longer than a minute. Anny tips? :]

u/MyPetrolEmotion3615 • 2 points

Really enjoying the guide, thank you! But this has made me realise I have somehow grown up using my larynx to change pitch so that they’re almost one and the same. Another little autistic surprise. I need to train to separate the two before I can continue this journey. I wonder if it explains why I can sing in a soft high voice but cannot do things like Michael Jackson’s hee hee.

u/littletamidoll • 2 points

*sigh* this seems so daunting. :( But I do want to thank you for putting all the effort to putting this together. I have found it hard to figure out how to even start so this is helpful. <3

u/Leading-Chipmunk1495 • 2 points

Does this guide work for someone who just wants to be able to do different voices as just a hobby? If not could you point me to one that's more appropriate?

u/Perfect_Floor8655 • 2 points

Thank you!

u/RoyalThen476 • 2 points

a bit late sorry, but what if my voice is already on d3 if i speak​ quieter and above d3 if i speak normally. (im a male, 24 y/o)

u/FlugHund-II • 2 points

this is golden
i didn't expect to see progress after just 3 days or what it's been

although i'm not 100% sure i'm doing it right

and learning that stuff about how you generate your voice ist interesting, i am starting to wonder why that was never covered in music lessons in school

u/Apol1yon_Ash • 2 points

Hey L. I have noticed that my speech tone is already somewhat in the female range. But that might also explain why I am not able to take my Adam's apple very much further.

u/Baileyjrob • 2 points

So I'm having a bit of confusion: when I use the vocal pitch thing, it shows my voice pitch fluctuating *wildly*, but my natural voice seems to be hovering in the target range, which... doesn't sound right.

u/ashleylastname • 2 points

OMG TYYYY

u/TotesMessenger • 1 points

I'm a bot, bleep, bloop. Someone has linked to this thread from another place on reddit:

- [/r/u_35cut] L's Voice Training Guide (Level 1) for MTF transgender vocal feminization

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u/Another--Guy • 1 points

thank you very much, but I have a cold right now and I'm afraid of destroying my already damaged throat

u/secretiveconfusion • 1 points

Some small questions: when I try the swallow-and-hold exercise, it often feels like there's something stuck in my throat for at least half an hour after. Is this normal or am I doing something wrong? I'm also struggling to get the higher half of the whisper siren to work.

I'm only just starting this but I already really appreciate how much you've put into this guide.

u/Beginning_Clothes_65 • 1 points

Heyo, so I just started with this guide and I had quick question…. So when I do the whisper siren my small dog doesn’t sound as high as the video and when I get to the small dog I can’t create a solid sound like she can, it’s like a hoarse noise. Are these things just because my larynx isn’t used to this position or am I doing something wrong?

u/OverallPeach • 1 points

!remindme 1day

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u/ContentPlatypus4528 • 1 points

I find keeping the voice consistent because having autism makes me adjust how I speak depending on who I'm speaking to

u/Extra_Preference4636 • 1 points

i thogot it was l frome death note

u/Upbeat-Mastodon-223 • 1 points

Mine is beside C3 AND D3, I just want to go up to E3 to sound more gender neutral, I hope I do need surgery for that

u/SissierSwe • 1 points

Think I'm finally gonna try this 😊

u/Im_not_a_cat_95 • 1 points

I'm following this. for now it went quite well for me. im 1 week in voice training. The whole week i just practice raise my larynx and try stay on the right pitch. . Something i noticed change is. When i empty swallow, the larynx raise smoothly. back then if i swallow i can feels like something stuck and trying to raise. now its smoothly. dont know if its normal or not